Heavy rain has created waterlogged conditions in Arbat refugee camp in Iraqi Kurdistan. Syrian refugees, mostly ethnic Kurds, have been arriving steadily in the Kurdish region of Iraq since the beginning of the conflict in Syria. Jacob Russell for USA TODAY

Children and young men play football inside a sheep barn in Arbat. Arbat is located approximately 12 miles (20 km) from the city of Sulaimaniyah, Iraq. Jacob Russell for USA TODAY

According to UNICEF, the nearly 15,000 Syrians who have escaped to Iraq lack safe drinking water, and the aid agency predicts that the number will exceed 150,000 by the end of June. Jacob Russell for USA TODAY

Habib Habash Ali, a refugee from the Syrian city of Dayr Al-Zour waits at Arbat refugee camp with her husband, Bilal Jadm Hamed, left, has leukemia. "We had to leave because of the bombardment," Ali said. Jacob Russell for USA TODAY

On the outskirts of the town of Arbat in Iraqi Kurdistan, rows of tattered blue and white tents house refugees who trekked hundreds of miles to escape the violence. Jacob Russell for USA TODAY

Children play football inside a sheep barn in Arbat camp. Jacob Russell for USA TODAY

Young boys run to catch a donkey in Arbat refugee camp. Jacob Russell for USA TODAY

Children wait at the refugee camp in Arabat. The semiautonomous region of Kurdistan hosts 80% of the refugees in Iraq. Most are Kurds from northern Syria. Jacob Russell for USA TODAY

"The humanitarian crisis is glaring — and it's only going to get bigger — and fears that this is going to destabilize the neighborhood have risen," said Joshua Landis, professor of Middle East history at the University of Oklahoma. Jacob Russell for USA TODAY

The length of the conflict is creating a unprecedented refugee population, according to the United Nations. Jacob Russell for USA TODAY